


When the Caged Bird Finally Sang

by needles



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-25
Updated: 2015-06-25
Packaged: 2018-04-06 04:01:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4207122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/needles/pseuds/needles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren wonders if Levi will ever know happiness?</p>
            </blockquote>





	When the Caged Bird Finally Sang

He frowned and rubbed at the spot that was taunting him, it just wouldn't go. Realising that it must be on the outside of the glass he unlatched the window and stretched his arm out and round, tongue between his teeth as he reached awkwardly for the dirty stain. Almost... just another inch...there! His face broke into a satisfied smile as he obliterated the offensive mark. He latched the window shut again and gave the inside a final polish in case of fingerprints. Perfect.

Hopping down from his stool he moved it to the next window and began again, humming to himself as he worked, just six more windows on this corridor then he could start polishing the floor. They all thought he was pathetic, spending all his time cleaning indoors when he could be out in the fresh air and sunshine. He knew one or two of them had guessed the real reason, their pitying looks when they saw him tying the bandana round his head and picking up his cleaning cloths made that obvious. So what if he did it just to stay closer to Levi, it made him happy just to be in the same building as Levi, being able to do something to help him was the icing on the cake.

Behind him footsteps clicked crisply along the floorboards. He didn't need to look to know who it was. Levi passed without stopping. That meant the windows were acceptable. Smiling and singing softly to himself Eren scrubbed on. Levi passed him by twice more in the time it took to reach the final pane of glass.

The footsteps stopped, Eren stopped scrubbing, had he missed something?

"Why are you singing?"

Taken aback he turned, "Sorry sir?"

"Every time I pass you you're singing something, why?"

"Because I'm happy."

This kid was definitely one brick short of a wall!

"You should try singing yourself Heichou."

Levi just looked at him as if he'd grown a second head, which could perhaps be possible in Eren's case. "I don't have anything to be happy about."

Eren's face fell, of course Levi didn't, he felt a jerk for suggesting it.

"What are you singing anyway?"

"A folk song Mikasa taught me when we were little." He answered.

Levi just gave a nod and turned to go. Eren took a breath to sing. "If cleaning makes you that happy I can find you plenty more dirt instead of wasting your breath on folk songs." Levi threw back at him as he strode back to his office.

Watching him Eren could barely imagine the willpower it must take him to even function every day, let alone continue to lead his squad after so many losses.

 

Six months later the Titans were on the retreat. Expeditions now were simply mopping up stragglers, losses were few and far between. There was even talk of building new settlements outside the walls. His fellow squad members were making plans for a future that once they hadn't dared contemplate.

Eren hadn't needed to transform  into a Titan for several weeks but one thing hadn't changed, the cleaning still had to be done. He finished up in the mess room, taking one last look under the tables. If he'd missed something Levi would be sure to spot it. Satisfied that you could eat your dinner off the plates, the tables, or even the floor, he set off for Levi's office to get his next assignment.

His ears detected a strange sound as he entered the corridor, he couldn't identify it but he concluded it was most likely coming from Hanji's rooms down below. Most weird noises emanated from there, nobody questioned them anymore.

However it got louder as he approached Levi's office. The door was just slightly ajar. He pushed gently and through the gap he could see Levi, back to the door, tidying up his papers and dusting down his desk. Eren had found the source of the weird noise, Levi was singing.

If you could call it singing, he seemed to be hitting half the notes and missing the rest. If you were feeling generous his voice could best be described as a cross between a wailing cat and a saw cutting wood. He was clearly tone deaf and as for carrying a tune, he'd dropped it long ago.

 Eren thought if he listened much longer his ears might just start to bleed. He also thought it was the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard.


End file.
